2019 NCAA DI Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 2
NEW ORLEANS – The NCAA Division I Women’s National Coaches’ Poll, released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), is starting to see things shake up a bit after a weekend of key meets in Terre Haute and Boston.
Only nine programs remained unchanged in the third edition of the polls.
NCAA Division I — Women's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Colorado
Colorado
2
New Mexico
New Mexico
3
Arkansas
Arkansas
4
Washington
Washington
5
Stanford
Stanford
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Colorado remained atop of the National Coaches’ Poll for the third consecutive week, receiving six first-place votes. The Buffaloes did not race this past weekend, and are expected to compete on October 4 at the Joe Piane Invitational at Notre Dame.
New Mexico, receiving three first-place votes, held steady at No. 2. The Lady Lobos also had the weekend off and will see Colorado in South Bend next weekend.
No. 3 Arkansas received one first-place vote moved up two spots from their ranking last week. National Athlete of the Week Taylor Werner claimed an individual title en route to a team title for the Razorbacks at the John McNichols Invitational, a meet that featured some of the top nationally ranked teams in the early going.
Arkansas received its highest placement since the 2015 season when it was ranked third for two consecutive weeks.
The jump made by the Razorbacks bumped Washington down one spot to No. 4. The Huskies placed third behind Arkansas and No. 5 Stanford at the John McNichols Invitational.
Speaking of Stanford, the Cardinal made the biggest jump within the top-5, moving up three spots from eighth last week after their runner-up performance in Terre Haute. Senior Fiona O’Keeffe set a collegiate best on the 5K grass circuit while placing second to Werner.
No. 6 BYU, receiving the final first-place vote, didn’t budge for the third consecutive week. The Cougars are slated to run at the Bill Dellinger Invitational on September 28.
Oregon was the only other team to move up in the top-10, moving up one place to No. 9. The Ducks will play host to the aforementioned Bill Dellinger Invitational on Saturday.
The biggest jump in this week’s edition of the National Coaches’ Poll comes from Syracuse, soaring 10 spots to move into No. 17. Junior Amanda Vestri led four women to a top-10 finish as the Orange rolled to a team title at the Coast-to-Coast Battle in Beantown. This is their highest ranking since 2016 when the Orange was also ranked No. 17.
Other teams climbing the leaderboard include Ole Miss (No. 15 to No. 14), Minnesota (No. 23 to No. 22), and Villanova (No. 30 to No. 28). The Wildcats competed in the Main Line Invitational and left with a team title.
Two new teams make an appearance in the top-30 for the first time this year. Teams that are new to the polls this week are Northern Arizona (No. 25) and Boston College (No. 26), who were previously receiving votes.
The Lumberjacks caught some attention at the John McNichols Invitational following their fifth place finish in the team standings behind Arkansas, Stanford, Washington, and Michigan.
Boston College is making its first top-30 appearance since 2014 after claiming runner-up honors to Syracuse at the Coast-to-Coast Battle in Beantown.
The next NCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll will be released next Tuesday, October 1.
Be sure to check back throughout the season as a lot will change between now and November 23, when the 2019 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships will be held at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Indiana.
